{"id":639489,"date":"2025-12-18T03:31:29","date_gmt":"2025-12-18T03:31:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/639489\/"},"modified":"2025-12-18T03:31:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-18T03:31:29","slug":"why-women-are-playing-better-and-better-now-theyre-hitting-195","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/639489\/","title":{"rendered":"Why women are playing better and better: \u2018Now they’re hitting 195!\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Iga\u00a0Swiatek\u00a0believes it may be even more difficult for any player to dominate the women\u2019s game in 2026.<\/p>\n

The Pole won her sixth Grand Slam title with a first Wimbledon win in July, after a difficult clay-court season in which she suffered some unusual losses, before eventually finishing the year ranked No 2, an achievement she is rightly proud of.<\/p>\n

All four majors were won by different women in 2025 \u2013 the third time that has happened in the past five years \u2013 and\u00a0Swiatek\u00a0knows the field is getting stronger all the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think finishing as No 2 is a great achievement,\u201d\u00a0Swiatek\u00a0said in an interview with CLAY<\/strong>, also published by RG Media<\/strong><\/a>. \u201cI think the level we\u2019re all at got more equal. I think you could see that, especially during the WTA finals, basically, any of us could win this tournament, we really played a lot of tight matches.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere are some players that obviously prefer some conditions or others who feel better in this or that part of the season\u2026but I think overall we all are getting better in a really fast way.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I would serve, like, 185 kilometres per hour three years ago, I think it would be a game changer, and it would be amazing, but now (that) I actually learned to do that, I realised that girls are serving 195. It\u2019s obviously not only about the speed. It is just an example, but I think tennis is evolving and we\u2019re all presenting a pretty good level now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aryna Sabalenka heads the rankings going into 2026<\/a>, ahead of\u00a0Swiatek, with Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova, Elena Rybakina and Jess Pegula all tightly packed from No 3 to No 6. Madison Keys, Jasmine Paolini, Mirra Andreeva and Ekaterina Alexandrova round out a high-quality top 10.<\/p>\n

Swiatek\u00a0describes 2025 as the \u201clongest season I ever played\u201d, perhaps not surprising since she played 79 matches, more than any other player on the WTA Tour<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Iga<\/p>\n

\u201cThe season was challenging, but, but I\u2019m super proud of it,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I am also happy that it\u2019s done, because I played a lot of matches this year. And the schedule was packed.\u201d<\/p>\n

She rounded off the year with a visit to her clothing manufacturer, On, with whom she says she\u2019s closely involved with the design of her outfits, even if she admits she doesn\u2019t say too much. \u201cI\u2019m not an expert,\u201d she laughs.<\/p>\n

And having enjoyed a quick holiday in Mauritius,\u00a0Swiatek\u00a0has already begun her pre-season training. Now she is focused on peaking at the Australian Open, where victory would make her only the 11th woman ever \u2013 and first since Maria Sharapova in 2012, to complete the career Grand Slam of all four majors; Wimbledon, US Open, French Open and Australian Open.<\/p>\n

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Swiatek\u00a0says she is not motivated solely by results, however. \u201cI\u2019ve got to say that most of the amazing things that happen in my career happened when I wasn\u2019t really expecting them and wasn\u2019t really focusing on them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not that kind of person that imagines myself with the trophy or something. I don\u2019t think it would give me a lot of discipline in terms of the work, so I think I\u2019d rather focus on the process. Also, you don\u2019t always have full influence on the results.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevertheless,\u00a0Swiatek\u00a0was just one point from reaching the final in Melbourne this year and the 24-year-old knows how close she is to completing the career Grand Slam.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t set goals like that,\u201d she said. \u201cObviously it\u2019s something that I dream of and something that I\u00a0want to happen one day but I\u2019m not going to come to Melbourne<\/a> and think about it every day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that there\u2019s seven matches to win and the Grand Slams are two weeks, a lot can happen. So I\u2019m really going to just take it step by step. Just focusing on the pre-season well is the key, and then I\u2019ll see. But for sure, it would be a dream come true.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

If you enjoyed this interview with Iga Swiatek, don\u2019t miss many other interviews with the protagonists of the tennis tour. Click here and read much more for free.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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